Heritage management in southern Africa: Local, national and international discourse

Abstract

AbstractAbstractHeritage management in southern Africa has been the by-product of colonialism. During the colonial period therefore, much of the practice reflected the interests of the colonial masters and hardly considered the aspirations of the local communities. Heritage was largely considered as of scientific interest and protection was also viewed in this light. As far as its protection is concerned, the general thinking was that proper scientific procedures needed to be followed. In this paper, we however argue that, traditionally, there did exist ways and means of protecting the cultural heritage that were just as effective as the scientific procedures. However, with the insistence on science as well as the political process in southern Africa and indeed elsewhere on the continent, part of the legacy of colonialism has been the alienation of local communities from their cultural heritage. Regrettably, it would seem that, despite political independence, heritage management in the region has continued to reflect the colonial discourse within which it was scientifically established. We argue that successful heritage management should involve the local populations and should integrate both traditional and scientific procedures.